This is a tough deep division, likely the best in the NBA from top to bottom, but I will go out on a limb and say that Houston will win the division.

Defensively, Houston is going to be tough. The addition of Artest (who is a coward for not fighting Big Ben and going after a small fan instead) will help to hide the defensive liability that is T-Mac.

Shane Battier has also become a defensive force, and has come into his own offensively as well. I played with Shane in junior high at Detroit Country Gay School (a terrible place, but with good basketball coaches); and it still surprises me to see the way his offensive game has developed.

If Adelman can keep this team from becoming like the Knicks with Allan Houston and Spreewell, i.e. your best players playing the same position, and keep Yao healthy, Houston is going to be tough.

Either your a lying bastard about playing with Battier at Country DAY school or you were just trying to be funny and did not achieve that goal. Weak either way.

Ronnie,

To the extent that you suggest that I should not have referred to that authoritarian hell hole as Detroit Country Gay School, you are correct — it is insulting to gay people everywhere to somehow be associated with DCDS. So, I apologize to all the gay people out there.

No, I am not lying about playing with Shane in junior high. If I were going to lie about something, it would be much more grandiose. In truth, I spent eight years at DCDS. I don’t see this as “achiev[ing a] goal,” as you suggest, just being at a particular place at a particular time — though I suppose eight years at that prison (DCDS) is a test of endurance.

Everyone I know that also endured DCDS, hated it. My point was to compliment the basketball program they have developed there — Coach Keener (HS varsity) was excellent, as was Coach Thompson (JHS coach) — while noting that the rest of the school SUCKS.

I like Houston’s team but it seems the most likely outcome is some kind of injury hurts the team at playoff time. If they are healthy, they will be tough. I can also see Houston being in the market for a PG (do Luther Head + Rafer Alston sound like championship PGs?) later this season and willing to make a bad long-term deal for a good short-term payoff so that’s worth watching.

San Antonio should be better if Manu Giflopoli returns to full health. I think Roger Mason is going to be a big rotation player for them, replacing Brent Barry with almost equal offensive production and vastly improved defense.

Houston definitely has a problem at the pg spot, though I have been impressed with Rafer Alston’s development last year. When he is on, he can be a championship caliber pg — remember the game against the Lakers towards the end of last season.

I would like to see McGrady take a shot at the point (allowing Artest to play sg, and Battier at sf, for a pretty solid defensive lineup including Yao in the middle). The only problem would be that nobody other than McGrady may ever touch the ball ;-)